HOW WE'RE HELPING GARDENERS DURING COVID-19:
While we can't meet you in person until the health crisis ends, our volunteers are still active and available to assist you online.
We are currently offering virtual advice clinics, presentations and workshops via Zoom. Here are just a few of the many presentations we offer:
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Houseplants: Our Constant Garden
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Landscaping with Trees and Large Shrubs
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Putting the Garden to Bed
Have a garden question? Visit our Ask a Master Gardener page.
We'll update this notice if things change. Meanwhile, stay safe, and happy gardening.
If you didn't do it in December, bring spring indoors now, with paperwhite narcissus. Put stones/beach glass in a container, top with bulbs and add stones/glass to leave just the tops exposed. Keep water level at the base of the bulbs. In 4-6 weeks you'll see beautiful flowers.
Here's a great post on vegetable garden planning for newbies, courtesy The Garden Professors. Great questions to ask yourself before you start buying seeds, etc.
Planning Ahead (in a pandemic) for Vegetable Garden Success
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Looking back to January 2020, most of us would have never imagined the year we’ve had. All of our best laid plans went away and instead we socially distanced, scavenged for toilet paper, and cance.....
Every vegetable is a member of a family. E.g. peppers, tomatoes, potatoes and eggplant are all in the Solanaceae (tomato) family. Members of the same vegetable family attract the same pests and diseases and have similar nutrient needs. Study the families to plan crop rotation.
The Globe and Mail is hosting a free webinar on climate change and Canada's food supply, next Wednesday, January 27, 1:30 pm. Should be interesting! #climatechange #sustainability #agriculture ![]()
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bit.ly/3bKJ6Sr
When vegetable garden planning, include crop rotation to care for your soil and reduce pests and diseases. Don't grow the same vegetable, or its family member (e.g. tomatoes/potatoes), in the same place each year. A 3-4 year crop rotation is recommended.
Like the trendy rusted look in the garden? BC Master Gardeners shared a recipe to rust steel / stainless steel / Corten steel faster than mother nature. Mix in spray bottle: 2 oz. vinegar, 16 oz. hydrogen peroxide, ½ TB salt. Apply repeatedly until you get the effect you like.
Tuesday, January 26, at 1 pm, there's an online lecture about Federal Twist, an extraordinary "wet prairie", full of hardy grasses and perennials. James Golden's blog is a fabulous read, which suggests the lecture will be, too. $18 USD![]()
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bit.ly/3nGyXbP
And here's a quick seed starting calculator. Note that the the last frost in Toronto is usually around April 30. ![]()
awaytogarden.com/when-to-start-seeds-calculator/
when to start seed - A Way To Garden
awaytogarden.com
When to start vegetable, herb and flower seed, indoors and in the garden
As you pore over the seed catalogues arriving now, note the time required for your choices to germinate and then grow to harvest or bloom. Then make up a calendar to ensure you get your seeds started at the right time. Check now that you have all the supplies you need, too.
Wilmot Horticultural Society and Nith Valley EcoBoosters recently hosted a great presentation by Master Gardener Sean James, "Nifty Native Plants". See it on YouTube. #nativeplants #pollinatorgardens #pollinator![]()
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www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUAJaOb4nYA
www.youtube.com
Why do we think that using native plants means a sacrifice in beauty? It does not! Our speaker, Sean James, will discuss various, desirable, ornamental nativ...
Master Gardeners of Ontario
Compost Council of Canada
Toronto Region Conservation Authority
Toronto Botanical Gardens
City of Toronto
